Politicians are eager to announce when federal funds flow to the state for a variety of projects, from a few thousand dollars for a local food bank to a few million for a shipbuilding contract. But candidates win easy applause by pledging to slash spending if they’re elected.

Rose Clayton Cochran – who became a focal point in the re-election campaign of her husband, Sen. Thad Cochran, when a man was accused of taking bedridden photos of her to use against the Republican – has died. She was 73.